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Genetic Diversity and Use of African Indigenous Vegetables Especially Slender Leaf International Journal of Vegetable Science ISSN: (Print) (Online) Journal homepage: https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/wijv20 Genetic diversity and use of African indigenous vegetables especially slender leaf Joshua Kiilu Muli , Johnstone O. Neondo , Peter K. Kamau & Nancy L.M. Budambula To cite this article: Joshua Kiilu Muli , Johnstone O. Neondo , Peter K. Kamau & Nancy L.M. Budambula (2020): Genetic diversity and use of African indigenous vegetables especially slender leaf, International Journal of Vegetable Science, DOI: 10.1080/19315260.2020.1829768 To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/19315260.2020.1829768 Published online: 08 Nov 2020. Submit your article to this journal View related articles View Crossmark data Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at https://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=wijv20 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF VEGETABLE SCIENCE https://doi.org/10.1080/19315260.2020.1829768 Genetic diversity and use of African indigenous vegetables especially slender leaf Joshua Kiilu Muli a, Johnstone O. Neondo b, Peter K. Kamau c, and Nancy L. M. Budambula a aDepartment of Biological Sciences, University of Embu, Embu, Kenya; bInstitute for Biotechnology Research, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, Nairobi, Kenya; cDepartment of Life Sciences, South Eastern Kenya University, Kitui, Kenya ABSTRACT KEYWORDS African indigenous (AIVs), and traditional, vegetables play a role Crotalaria spp; traditional in food security. This review examines distribution, use, diver­ vegetables; rattle pods sity, and techniques used to study AIVs with special interest on Crotalaria species. Google scholar, PubMed, and the open web were searched for published articles between 1990 and 2020. The AIVs are distributed in almost all African countries but are mostly consumed in East and West Africa. The distribution and genetic diversity of some common AIVs has been documented. There is a need to create awareness on the use and conservation of AIVs because of their role in food security and livelihoods. Diversity in plant genetic resources (PGR) requires continuous study since the human population and urbanization are increasing and cultivable land is decreasing contributing to food insecurity (Govindaraj et al., 2015). Availability of diverse plant genetic resources facilitates the development of new, or improved, cultivars, with desirable characteristics using breeding. Undomesticated relatives of today’s crops, and landraces, are often adapted to marginal environments. This potential can be tapped and introgressed into domesticated varieties to improve their potential to grow in harsh environ­ ments. Conservation genetics aims to maintain genetic diversity at many levels, providing a tool for population monitoring and assessment (Narain, 2000). The reduction in population in natural populations, referred to as genetic bottlenecks, contributes to reduced genetic diversity, which may lead to increased susceptibility of plants to pests and diseases. Existing literature on vulnerability, food security, and ecosystems has focused on cultivated crops. However, there exists evidence that wild foods are an important part of the global food basket. Wild foods have provided small holder farmers with a ‘hidden harvest,’ as they often use co-evolved plant species, and other wild biodiversity in, and around, their farms to supplement food and earnings. Although the exact economic value, or volume, involved is CONTACT Nancy L.M. Budambula [email protected] [email protected] Department of Biological Sciences, University of Embu, Embu, Kenya © 2020 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC 2 J. K. MULI ET AL. difficult to estimate, trade-in, and use of, wild foods provides an important supplement to household income and is especially critical during economic hardship (Bharucha and Pretty, 2010). At the regional, and national, level food balances guide policies on trade, aid and declaration of food crises. Notably absent from these balances is the contribution made by wild edible species. Routine underestimation of wild foods may lead to neglect of their roles in the ecosystem and supportive local knowledge systems that sustain them (Bharucha and Pretty, 2010). This study reviewed distribution, use, genetic diversity, and study techniques of African indigenous vegetables with special interest in Crotalaria species. This is because the Fabaceae family has the highest number of indigenous vascular plants in Kenya; 576 species of which 93 belong to the genus Crotalaria, making it the third richest genus of indigenous plant species in Kenya. The species are distributed in almost all agro-ecological zones of the country (Zhou et al., 2017). African indigenous vegetables are edible, native, vegetable species whose natural habitat can be traced to Africa, or have been in Africa long enough to have been indigenized (Gido et al., 2016). Other terms used to describe these vegetables have been detailed, with a shift from use of the term traditional vegetables to African indigenous or African leafy vegetables (Towns and Shackleton, 2018). About 64% of the African continent is either hyper-arid, arid, or semi-arid, with approximately 50% of the population living in these lands (Kigomo, 2003). Increasing population in agricultural potential regions has caused migration to areas with marginal rainfall. This means these lands cannot be fully exploited agriculturally unless there is intervention through irrigation, leaving inhabitants at the risk of starvation and malnutrition. The AIVs are often adapted to these regions and can withstand severe climatic conditions. The relative importance of these vegetables differs between communities (Table 2). Increasing aridity and unpredictable rainfall has forced many African governments to reconsider the role of AIVs in food security. Crotalaria is the largest plant genus in tropical Africa with over 600 species, 500 of which are thought to have originated from Africa. Plant species in this genus are distributed in almost all agro-ecological zones of Africa; most are found in eastern and southern tropics of Africa. Some species in the genus are eaten as food especially in East-Africa (Pohill, 1982). The distribution of AIVs has been extensively mapped (Chauvet, 2004; Schippers, 2000; Shmelzer and Gurib-Fakim, 2008). Domestication intensity can be calculated as a percent of the number of countries where the plant is domestica divided by the number of countries where it is found in its wild form (Table 1). This can be used to determine the domestication level and provide insight on diversity loss. Domestication intensity ranged from 11% to 85% in different species (Table 1). It is thought that most AIVs known today are a fraction of AIVs that previously existed (Adebooye and Opabode, 2004). INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF VEGETABLE SCIENCE 3 Table 1. Common African Indigenous Vegetables and their distribution in Africa, adapted from (Schippers 2000; Chauvet 2004; Shmelzer and Gurib-Fakim 2008). No. of Calculated Common countries domestication name Botanical name Countries/Regions cultivated found intensity (%) Amaranth Amaranthus blitum L./ Uganda, Kenya, Cameroon 23 13 A. lividus Linn./ A. hypochondriacus L. and A. hybridus L. Celosia argentea L. Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Ghana, Cameroon 29 17 Amaranthus cruentus L. Ethiopia, Tanzania, Nigeria, D.R. Congo, 23 35 Benin, Sierra Leone, Togo, Zimbabwe A. dubius Mart. ex Thell. Kenya, Uganda Sierra Leone, Ghana, 20 45 Benin, Nigeria, Cameroon, D.R Congo A. graecizans L. Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi, 31 19 Malawi, Zimbabwe Brassica Brassica carinata A.Braun/ Ethiopia, Malawi, Tanzania, Zambia, 17 47 B. integrifolia L.H.Bailey Zimbabwe, Kenya, Uganda, Côte d’Ivoire Brassica juncea (L.) Czern. Zimbabwe, Zambia, Nigeria, Malawi, 14 43 Réunion, Mauritius Cleome monophylla L./ Kenya, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Zambia, 43 12 C. gynandra L. Nigeria Nightshade Solanum scabrum Mill./ Liberia, Ethiopia, Mozambique, South 18 44 S. nigrum L. Africa, Côte d’Ivoire, Benin, Nigeria, Cameroon S. villosum Mill. Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania 17 24 S. americanum Mill. Sierra Leone, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, unknown Tanzania, Seychelles, Mauritius, Côte d’Ivoire, Cameroon, Zimbabwe, Mozambique Legumes Crotalaria brevidens Benth. Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania Sudan 12 33 C. ochroleuca G.Don. Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Congo, 35 17 Cameroon, Nigeria Vigna unguiculata L. West, Central, East, Southern Africa 46 85 Cucumis metuliferus E.Mey. Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Kenya 24 17 Kedrostis pseudogijef Gilg. Kenya, Ethiopia Unknown Lagenaria siceraria Molina. Kenya, Tanzania, Cameroon, South Unknown Africa, Zimbabwe Momordica charantia L. Kenya, Nigeria, Zimbabwe 27 11 Okra A. esculentus L. Ghana, Sudan, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, 45 18 Senegal, Congo, Uganda, Abelmoschus caillei A. Chev./ Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon 13 23 A. manihot L. Wild Launaea cornuta (Hochst ex Kenya, Tanzania 5 40 lettuce Oliv. & Hiern) C.Jeffrey/ Vernonia cinerea L. Launaea taraxacifolia Willd. Nigeria, Senegal, Benin Unknown The AIVs in many communities were collected from the wild, or planted in home gardens among other staple food crops, for subsistence and household income (Abukutsa-Onyango et al., 2010). Based on origin, AIVs can be grouped into whether they originated from Africa or were introduced. Indigenous vegetables have Africa as their primary center of origin; traditional vegetables have Africa as their secondary center of origin (Abukutsa-Onyango et al., 2010; Godfrey et al.,
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